In recent years, the price of copper and other metals has steadily increased due to industrialization of countries around the world. The price of certain metals has increased dramatically leading to a market that supports thievery of used wire wherein the wire is either reused or the conductor reclaimed. A common conductor is copper, known for its low resistivity and ease of bending, which is stolen and sold to recycling facilities. The most common metals stolen are copper, aluminum, brass and bronze.
The theft results in downed street lights, street signals and pedestrian walkways due to a loss of power resulting in perilous roadway conditions for drivers and pedestrians alike, as well as thousands of dollars in damage including expenses relating to replacement wiring, machinery and man hours.
In 2011, a pedestrian was killed near Miami, Fla. while attempting to cross a road where the street lights were inoperable due to copper wire theft. In Fresno, Calif., thieves stealing copper wire from city street lights are costing the city about $50,000 per month, over 2,500 street lights have been stripped to date. In Davis, Calif., six miles of copper wire was stolen from electrical boxes for street lights. Miles of copper wire was stolen from street lights lining the main highway through South Florida. Thieves will cut copper wiring at a location and spool the wire onto a cable reel allowing thieves to take many miles of copper cable at a time.
This problem is not limited to the United States. In January of 2011, 300 meters of copper wire was stolen which resulted in the derailment of an ICE train near the Dutch city of Zevenaar. In November of 2011, copper wire from street poles was stolen from the Halifax Stanfield International Airport.
In addition to the loss of the wire, costs include replacement labor. Subsequent to a theft, the wiring must be replaced quickly to restore power and protect the communities from electrocution from exposed wiring and other unsafe conditions.
Typical counter measures include law enforcement officials working in close conjunction with scrap metal dealers, as well as implementing resale waiting periods and intrusion detection. Various attempts have also been made to prevent theft of the wire.
U.S. Patent Publication No. US2009/0095500A1 discloses a locking cap to safeguard metal wiring in a utility pole which may include a base adapted to be detachably mounted to the utility pole by at least one fastener and a shield adapted to be locked to the base.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,880,612 discloses a method and alarm device used to prevent metal theft from irrigation systems including attaching an alarm device to a preexisting irrigation circuit, monitoring a continuous voltage to detect for integrity breach in an electric conductor.
U.S. Patent Publication 2008/0289870 discloses a wire clamping element placed on a base of an electrical fixture supporting pole for clampingly securing an electrical wire cable to a vertical surface.
What is lacking in the art is a device that prevents the theft of large sized wire without breaching the integrity of the wire.